DAWSONVILLE — Georgia wildlife authorities are looking into reports that a large black bear is menacing at least one resident in the Dawsonville area in the foothills of the north Georgia mountains.

Stella Millsapps told WSB-TV that she fears the bear might attempt to break into her home. She said the animal has come out of the woods night after night for the past several weeks and prowls around her property.

Millsapps set up a camera to capture pictures of the bear as it chewed on a garage can and her grill.

She’s tied up her large garbage can to keep the bear from raiding it, but said it still gets into the garbage, dragging any food scraps and trash out the woods.

“We’ve had bears before, but they’ve never bothered stuff. This is the first time this is tearing up everything,” Millsapps said.

Her daughter, Melissa Millsapps, added: “If he can do that, that close to the house, he could definitely get into a window or something like that, get in on somebody.”

Stella Millsapps said that both she and her grandson have seen the bear.

She said a representative of the Department of Natural Resources said they would send someone out to try to trap the bear but did not give a specific date.

*We welcome your comments on the stories and issues of the day and seek to provide a forum for the community to voice opinions. All comments are subject to moderator approval before being made visible on the website but are not edited. The use of profanity, obscene and vulgar language, hate speech, and racial slurs is strictly prohibited. Advertisements, promotions, spam, and links to outside websites will also be rejected. Please read our terms of service for full guides